Steroid Nation (TM) is an online journal looking at the use of anabolic steroids (and performance enhancing drugs PEDs, HGH, doping) in sports, youth, and society. By Gary Gaffney, M.D., from the University of Iowa, College of Medicine.

Tour de France

08/18/2010

Think of all the cyclists who doped themselves into oblivion including Floyd Landis, Alejandro Valverde, Tyler "Chimera" Hamilton, Ivan Basso, David Millar, and Bernhard Kohl. How many years suspension did these elite world class athletes receive? Couple generally.

Consider 23 year-old Italian cyclists Gianni Da Ros. This skinny kid was nailed with a number of PEDs, apparently including HGH, and most likley an EPO. What length ban did he receive? 20 years!!! Twenty -- that's right.

Italian Gianni Da Ros will not have to serve a 20-year suspension for
trafficking in banned substances, the Court of Arbitration for Sport
decided.

The court partially upheld the appeal by Da Ros, who asked to have the ban reduced to two years.

Da Ros was arrested in March, 2009 as part of a large operation by
the Italian police to stop the distribution of doping products in
fitness clubs.

In November, 2009, the Anti-Doping Tribunal of the National Olympic
Committee of Italy (CONI) found him guilty of several WADA code
violations, including the use, possession, trafficking and
administration of banned substances and imposed a 20-year ban.

The CAS said it "confirmed the existence of the infractions committed
by the Athlete", which reportedly included the use and distribution of
Human Growth Hormone.

However, the court "considered that a twenty-year ban was not
justified and has reduced it to a period of four years which corresponds
to the standard suspension provided by Article 10.3.2 of the World
Anti-Doping Code."

Da Ros will be eligible to race again March 11, 2013...

What is the saying...The NCAA was mad at Kentucky so put Eastern Carolina on suspension...

08/10/2010

The AP reports BALCO investigator and Barry Bond's good buddy Jeff Novitzky will lead the investigation of Lance Armstrong's cycling antics in the near future. Armstrong would likely rather have the IRS invite him to a weekend picnic at Alcatraz.

He's been called high-minded, a trailblazing lawman and "America's top steroid cop."

For
someone who does his best work behind the scenes, federal agent Jeff
Novitzky is hardly a stranger to the spotlight. And depending on the
results of an ongoing investigation into the sometimes-shadowy world of
pro cycling, he could soon become better-known still.

After
hounding home-run king Barry Bonds for years and wringing a confession
from Olympic sprinter Marion Jones, Novitzky is leading an investigation
that has questioned sponsors and examined claims from former teammates
of Lance Armstrong, the seven-time Tour de France champion. A grand jury
has been seated in
Los Angeles to hear evidence in the investigation
over the coming weeks and months, and Armstrong sponsors Trek Bicycle
Corp. and Nike each said Friday that they've been contacted by federal
agents.

"I'm just glad he ain't after me," said attorney Richard Emery. "He is a nightmare for anyone that's he's focused on."

08/06/2010

Before getting shoved off pager one by the Hewlett-Packard CEO sex-scandal the Wall Street Journal reported that WADA was looking closing at the international body governing pro cycling -- UCI.

The World Anti-Doping Agency said it has decided to step up its
oversight of drug testing in professional cycling amid concerns that the
sport has failed to aggressively police itself. David Howman,
WADA's director general, said that in the last three weeks, the
organization has taken steps to allow its staff to begin monitoring the
blood and urine profiles of the sport's elite riders that are collected
through the sport's Biological Passport program—and to push for
sanctions when necessary. "Our job is to make sure the system
isn't being sidestepped," Mr. Howman said. "We have the right of
intervening if we think cases aren't being prosecuted appropriately."

The
move reflects a growing concern in the antidoping community that the
International Cycling Union, or UCI, the governing body of the sport
which is charged with administering the Passport program, has not been
following procedures correctly and is not doing a satisfactory job of
cracking down on cheating.

WADA remains concerned that the UCI is shielding guilty cyclists from exposure when their biological samples test positive for drugs. Shocking that anyone think pro cyclists would cheat, or that officials would look the other way. (shocking if you are incredibly naive)

This person said antidoping officials are particularly concerned
about the status of five professional riders who were flagged for doping
in December but have not yet been sanctioned by the UCI. The riders,
whose names are known only to the UCI, were determined to be doping by
an independent committee of nine scientists and experts that was
appointed by the UCI to review data from blood and urine tests.

The
person said at least two members of the panel have voiced concerns that
the UCI may be disregarding these positive tests or shielding guilty
riders from punishment.

07/27/2010

As everyone (except me, because I have taken a break) knows Lance Armstrong retired from the Tour de France (TDF, or Take da Fraud considering the drug scandals) but apparently US Prosecutors continue to ride on.

Federal prosecutors handling an investigation into cheating in
professional cycling have subpoenaed documents from an arbitration case
that sought to prove that Lance Armstrong used performance-enhancing
drugs.

The documents contain depositions from former teammates and
associates of the seven-time Tour de France champion during a period
when a promotions company was trying to prove that Mr. Armstrong
employed banned drugs and practices—known as doping—during his cycling
career.

Jeffrey Tillotson, the attorney who represented the
company, SCA Promotions Inc., in the arbitration hearings, said it
received a subpoena for the records on July 16. He is preparing to send
the files to the federal prosecutors in Los Angeles who are handling the
investigation, he said.

We love the next paragraph about PEDs generally not being illegal. Oh yeah? That's patently ridiculous. There is a difference between using an illegal prescription drug for non-indicated reasons, or abusing a controlled substance, and the public's or the law enforcement's general lazy disregard of the abuse.

Mr. Armstrong has repeatedly denied doping allegations and has not been charged with any wrongdoing.Using
performing-enhancing techniques in sports is generally not against the
law in the U.S. But federal prosecutors could make the case that Mr.
Armstrong defrauded investors by accepting sponsorship dollars with the
understanding that he would not use the drugs, if they prove that he
doped.

In our view the problems pursing Armstrong remain several:

He has build up a great 'feel good' following with his charitable works

He could have taken prescribed drugs legally, for instance androgens as replacement following cancer

People close their eyes when an idol is tainted...evidence ESPN's Stewart Scott's lovefest about Armstrong on the eve when the TdF ended Sunday. He pointed out a small but vocal minority object to LS's drug use. Golly gee...

05/20/2010

Obviously we have been out of the doping scene over the past few weeks, but what a time to come back. Hot stories on Floyd Landis, Lance Armstrong, Brian Cushing. Interesting but weren't these controversial names a few years back with much vitriol spewed at those who would ever consider these athletes cheated.

The Landis story broke late Wednesday (ESPN) when he admitted to years of PED (EPO , blood doping, and steroids) use.

LANDIS:
"I WANT TO CLEAR MY CONSCIENCE"

In a lengthy phone interview last night with ESPN.com's Bonnie Ford,
cyclist Floyd Landis admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs for
most of his career, including in 2006 when he tested positive and was
stripped of his Tour de France victory and handed a two-year ban from
the sport. "I want to clear my conscience,'' he said. "I don't want to
be part of the problem any more.'' Landis also confirmed that he sent
emails to cycling and anti-doping officials over the past few weeks,
implicating dozens of other athletes, including Lance Armstrong, team
management and owners, as well as officials of the sport's national and
international governing bodies. ESPN is seeking further evidence and
comment from those individuals. Meanwhile, the head of cycling's world
governing body questions Landis' credibility, telling The Associated
Press that Landis is "seeking revenge" and holds a "grudge" against
Lance Armstrong and others.

07/31/2009

As found at The Sports Network (here), the 2009 Tour de France, does snare a doping athlete, who could be considered a relatively elite rider. Mikel Astarloza, who finished 11th in the 2009, and won the 16th stage, dropped a positive urine apparently containing EPO.

Mikel Astarloza, who finished 11th in the 2009 Tour
de France, has been provisionally suspended after an "adverse
analytical finding of recombinant EPO" was found in his urine sample in
an out-of-competition test on June 26, the UCI announced Friday.

Astarloza, who won the 16th stage of the Tour on July 21, will be
suspended for two years if his B sample also tests positive.

His only major cycling win was in 2003 in the Tour Down Under. He is currently a member of the team Euskaltel-Euskadi.

The Tour, won buy Alberto Contador (with Lance Armstrong 3rd) appeared to be enjoyed a relatively dope-free race this year.

07/23/2009

The New York Times reports that 2007 Gyro de Italia champion Danilo Di Luco tested positive for CERA EPO during this year's race (surprise).

CERA EPO is Continuous Erythropoiesis Receptor Activator (CERA) as form of Erythropoietin (EPO). The kidney naturally produces the hormone EPO, which stimulates red blood cell proliferation. CERA is a larger molecule that is not eliminated by the kidneys as easily as 'regular' EPO, t his making it a longer acting up-regulator of RBC production.

The attraction of doping athletes for CERA appears to be the thought that a new molecule would slip through the detection process...doping control....giving the athlete a PED boost. Athletes will try to get by with cheating as long as they think the cheating is undetectable.

The Italian cyclist Danilo Di Luca, the 2007 Giro d’Italia champion,
tested positive for the blood booster CERA twice at the Giro d’Italia
in May, the International Cycling Union said in a statement on
Wednesday.

Di Luca, the runner-up at the Giro, is the leader of the LPR Brakes-Farnese Vini team, a squad that was not invited to participate in the Tour de France. At the Giro, Di Luca finished 41 seconds behind Denis Menchov.

The cycling union said it provisionally suspended Di Luca, 33, after a Paris laboratory found traces of CERA in his blood.

“These
adverse findings were a direct result of a targeted test program
conducted on Mr. Di Luca using information from his biological
passports blood profile, previous test results and his race schedule,”
the cycling union said.

Neither of Di Luca’s backup blood samples
has been tested for traces of CERA, an anemia-fighting substance that
is a new generation of the drug EPO, which is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Both
EPO and CERA stimulate bone marrow to produce more oxygen-carrying red
blood cells, but CERA is longer lasting and requires fewer injections.

Antidoping
rules say Di Luca has the right to have both samples retested in his
presence or in the presence of a representative.

He will remain
provisionally suspended until the Italian Cycling Federation holds a
hearing to determine whether Di Luca had violated antidoping rules.

This year’s Tour, which ends Sunday in Paris, has not had any positive doping tests.

07/09/2009

One of the stealth drugs to enhance cycling performance over the years , Synacthene (or Synacthen) will be detectable in the 2009 Tour de France. Synacthene is ACTH or Adreno-cortical stimulating hormone. The drug would stimulate the adrenal grand to pour out cortisol, a natural steroidal hormonal with multiple physiological effects.

Anecdotal evidence from cyclists using the drug say if used correctly the substance decreased last race inflammation, and improves performance; however street talk alos says that if used inappropriately the drug can decrease cycling efficiency. Who knows..there ar no scientific studies of the agent. To SBS:

Anti-doping authorities have perfected a new test capable of
detecting the drug Synacthene and it is currently being used by doping
controllers at the Tour de France, sources have told AFP.

The
substance, a synthetic hormone also known as ACTH, has up to now proved
virtually impossible to detect and evidence has been limited to
allegations made by ex-users.

The new test has been perfected by
specialists at the Anti-Doping Laboratory in Cologne and was tried out
experimentally at German cycling events last year before being approved
by the International Cycling Union (UCI) as part of its new battery of
anti-doping measures.

"It is based on urine samples but can also be applied to blood samples," said Professor Mario Thevis, who developed the system.

"We prefer, however, urine because there are larger volumes and more samples available."

"Of
course, Synacthene was considered relevant and important, but blood
testing was not as frequent at that time and the first method was based
on blood specimens," Prof Thevis said.

"Moreover, the collection and storage conditions were critical: nowadays everything is harmonised."

Experts
say Synacthene has typically been used in association with anabolic
steroids and testosterone, the cocktail of drugs being injected
directly into a racer's body to boost resistance to pain and to enhance
performance.

According to anti-doping expert Dr Jean-Pierre de
Modenard, there is evidence of the drug having being used for many
years - not just in cycling, but also in football.

Dr. de Modenard hopes the discovery will help fill one of the remaining gaps in knowledge relating to illegal susbtances.

"To
state that only one percent of controls turn up positive is
hypocritical, and this has been the perfect example of what happens
when there is a lack of data," he said.

05/26/2009

Once close to the top of cycling world, Austrian cyclist Bernhard Kohl retired from the sport, apparently eschewing the dope-for-wins philosophy in pro cycling. Kohl is currently mired in a professional,personal, and legal quagmire of doping, and doping allegations.

Reflecting on this event, one cannot but help to think about the twisted culture of pro cycling. Ostensibly based on an activity that promotes health and fitness, all too often pro cycling promotes drug-cheating, dishonesty, and death from doping drugs like EPO. Kohl apparently tired of this nonsense, calling his career kaput.

It might be easy to drawn down on Kohl and individual athletes. Much of the disdain may be merited because no one should absolve these dopers of responsibility. However the system of management, doctors, trainers, personal managers that promotes doping should also be highly implicated. The athletes (in Europe) often are punished while the doctors behind the dopers simple get rich. From the Examiner:

Bernhard Kohl of Austria, the disgraced former rider for the former
Gerolsteiner team, has retired from cycling and said Monday he will not
return to the sport after his doping-related suspension ends.

"I don't want to continue leading a double life which is based on lies," Kojhl said at a press conference in Vienna, Austria.

Kohl
originally finished third overall in the 2008 Tour de France, 73
seconds behind race winner Carlos Sastre. But Kohl, 27, tested positive
for the EPO derivative CERA during the Tour de France and later
confessed to having used illegal doping products and methods for most
of his career. He was given a two-year suspension.

Kohl's
dismissal from the Tour improved riders below him in the overall
standings one position, including American Christian Vande Velde from
fifth to fourth.

"Without doping there is no equal opportunity
in the top international field," Kohl said. "This is absolutely the
end. I have voluntarily doped – in a system in which you can't win
without doping. Talent, training and iron discipline just aren't enough
at some point. Doping becomes the rule. A clean sport is unfortunately
an exception."

Kohl said that he would now dedicate himself to doping prevention, by speaking on the subject and organizing cycling camps.

05/18/2009

It's one thing to run afoul of the press and the fans using PEDs as a drug-cheat as we saw with Manny Ramirez. Manny lost a few million dollars, and lost some face with the fans and the Hall of Fame voters. However, it is quite another thing to be charged in a criminal prosecution.

World class cyclists -- elite competitors -- Bernhard Kohl and Michael Rasmussen appear to be targets of Austrian prosecutors as part of an international doping conspiracy. To Monsters and Critics:

Vienna prosecutors said Monday that they had
started criminal proceedings against cyclists Bernhard Kohl from
Austria and Denmark's Michael Rasmussen, as well as Austrian Nordic
skier Christian Hoffman, for allegedly running a blood doping
operation.

The three are suspected of having invested in a
blood centrifuge which they not only used for themselves but also made
available to other athletes, Austrian news agency APA reported.

Having just watched "Catch Me if You Can", the video with Leonardo DeCaprio and Tom Hanks, we don't think we would want to see the inside of a European prison (or any prison for that matter).

The third 'co-conspirator -- Christian Hoffman -- is no slouch as a gold medalist in skiing.

Hoffmann, who won a gold medal in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, denied the accusations.

'That's absolute nonsense, that's a smear campaign against me,' the
Austrian daily Die Presse quoted him in its Monday edition, after his
name was the first to be confirmed by prosecutors on Sunday.

Kohl has publicly admitted having used blood doping and having bought
the machine together with others. He has been stripped of his third
place in the 2008 Tour de France for using the blood booster CERA.

The cyclist's former manager Stefan Matschiner was conditionally
released on May 7 after several weeks of detention, as he was heavily
implicated by Kohl. The centrifuge was found in Matschiner's apartment
in Budapest.

Rasmussen is currently banned for lying about his whereabouts at the 2007 Tour in connection with doping tests.

Blood doping is mainly used in endurance sports. Athletes are injected
blood that has been enriched with performance-enhancing red blood
cells.

Sounds like these boys were very heavily involved in the doping process.

In the USA, doping obviously carries much more rewards than risks. If being a drug-cheat were risky would athletes like A-Rod and Manny dope? There are few legal consequences. The law trouble that dopers run into tend to occur when their egos run into a grand jury, ala Barry Bonds. If Bonds had been truthful (according to legal charges) he might have been exposed as a juicer or he might not have been embarrassed. Embarrassed or not, Bonds would never have seen the inside of a courtroom as defendant; the USA's legal machine looks the other way for athletes. No sports fraud, no conspiracy, etc. -- although there are exceptions (Marion Jones).

However, sounds like Kohl and Rasmussen are in a bit of trouble...btw, someone tell Rasmussen (photo left) to lift some weights...

04/25/2009

A huge doping scandal in pro cycling continue in Germany involving the T-Mobile team. Latest caught up were Andreas Kloeden and Matthias Kessler. To the Earth Times:

German cyclists Andreas Kloeden and Matthias Kessler have been
implicated in illegal doping practices following an independent
investigation, news magazine Der Spiegel reports. The former T-Mobile
cyclists are suspected of having received banned blood transfusions by
doctors at Freiburg University Clinic, the magazine reports in its
edition to appear Monday, quoting the results of an investigation by an
expert commission.

The independent commission has spent two
years looking into doping allegations against the doctors, Lothar
Heinrich and Andreas Schmid, who are alleged to have created a
systematic doping system between 1995 and 2006 for the former T-Mobile
and Team Telekom team.

Kloeden, who now rides for Astana and is regarded as Germany's top cyclist, and Kessler, who is serving a doping ban, did not comment to Spiegel on the report. Kloeden has always denied doping. Former
T-Mobile rider Patrik Sinkewitz has admitted having received banned
blood transfusions from the Freiburg doctors and also to having used
the illegal blood-booster erythropoietin (EPO).

04/11/2009

Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong believes that French
officials will ban him from this summer's event due to a recent report
stating he violated protocol during a recent drug test.

"There's a very high likelihood that they prohibit me from riding in
the Tour," a somber Armstrong said Friday in a video statement posted
on his Web site. "It's too bad. The tour is something I love dearly."

04/09/2009

Although it's is a tempest in a teapot in a way, the charge does hold importance. The AP says a French doping agency accuses Lance Armstrong of breaking protocol when an agent paid a visit to the multiple Tour de France winner last month.

Armstrong blew off the anti-doping physician for a time, showering etc. while the tester waited. The tests (urine, blood, hair) turned up negative, which is the teapot part. However as any enterprising athlete knows a 20-30 minute break can enable all kids of shenanigans to thwart dope testing...and this is well practiced among professional cyclists.

Lance haters will pile on; Lance defenders will scream in anguish. The rest of us will likely stay nauseated.

France's anti-doping agency says seven-time Tour de France champion
Lance Armstrong violated its rules and that it could punish him.

French doctors say they tested Armstrong's hair, urine and blood March 17. They say they found no traces of drugs.

However,
the agency, known as AFLD, said in a statement Thursday that a doctor
charged with testing Armstrong last month claimed Armstrong "did not
respect the obligation to remain under the direct and permanent
observation" of the tester.

The AFLD says it is can impose sanctions on the American rider, but didn't indicate what they would be.

04/07/2009

The Hartford Courant says WADA and UCI received a report on Lance Armstrong's recent haircut.A hair sample? That's what France is banking on in its report to the
International Cycling Union and the World Anti-Doping Agency.

A sample of Lance Armstrong's
hair, taken during an out-of-competition test in Beaulieu-sur-Mer in
southern France, was sent to be analyzed. Testing of hair samples is
allowed under French law, but is not recognized by WADA or the UCI.

French Doping Agency chief Pierre Bordry declined to disclose
details of the report. "I sent [the report] in order to get an opinion
on the matter. I am not making any judgments," Bordry said.

Armstrong said it was the first time he had to provide a hair sample. He said the test "butchered" his haircut.

The French Anti-Doping Authority (AFLD) has filed a report on Lance Armstrong's
behaviour during a recent out-of-competition drug test. Both the Union
Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) have
received the report.

The exact nature of the report has not been revealed, but it is likely
that Armstrong was not happy to have an impromptu haircut.

The seven-times Tour de France champion was visited in
Beaulieu-sur-Mer, France, on Tuesday, March 17, whilst training for
July's Tour de France. AFLD inspectors requested the usual blood and
urine samples, and also removed a sample of hair for analysis.

"Yet another 'surprise' anti-doping control," wrote Armstrong on
his Twitter site a day later. "This one from the French authorities.
Urine, blood, and hair! Classic..."

Armstrong had to get his hair cut short after the sample was taken as the testers had left it "butchered".

No wonder Armstrong wanted his own unique Catlin-testing protocol. That would retain his flamboyant hairstyle, seen at the left (um, pretty droll).

04/03/2009

Prosecutors confirmed today (Fri) there had been five more suspects in the Austrian doping scandal.

It
was announced that some of those arrests dated back to February. No
names have been revealed, but investigators of the "SoKo Doping"
special group said those people were from the provinces of Upper
Austria, Lower Austria, Carinthia and Vienna. Doping substances worth
200,000 Euros have been secured in house raids.

Vienna
prosecution spokesman Gerald Jarosch revealed one of the suspects was
Slovak Alexander N., 39, who is regarded as a member of criminal
circles in the bordering country. Another person put under arrest was
"Austrian businessman Gerhard D., 51 years old," Jarosch added.

Jarosch
said: "We may have demolished a criminal structure of dealers and
consumers – from production to supply. Some of the suspects were active
in the fitness and bodybuilding community."

The individuals are suspected of having breached Austrian anti-doping law by doing business with doping substances.

One more cylist may be hearing footsteps:

Media reports recently had it that cyclist Georg Totschnig, who came in
seventh in the Tour de France in 2005, was also under investigation.
The 37-year-old, who retired in 2006, dismissed any allegations – as
did cross-country Olympic winner Christian Hoffmann, whose name had
also been mentioned.

04/02/2009

From Earthtimes comes news of the latest in the burgeoning Austrian/Bulgarian doping scandal. The scandal extends now into cycling (Tour de France contestant Bernhard Kohl), skiing, and track.

Vienna - Austria's cycling doping scandal widened Thursday as three more people were detained, according to media reports. The reports come on top of four arrests of alleged doping suppliers in March. The
latest development came after Stefan Matschiner, the former manager of
disgraced Austrian cyclist Bernhard Kohl, was detained Monday night for
allegedly supplying athletes with a range of performance-enhancing
substances and blood transfusions.

Prosecutors in Vienna did not comment on the reports by Austrian press agency APA and the daily Die Presse, which attributed its story to unnamed investigators. According to the reports, at
least one of the arrests took place Wednesday. Earlier
in March, police detained Austria's former cross-country ski coach
Walter Mayer on charges of having bought the blood-booster EPO from a
pharmacist. The pharmacist and a professional cyclist were also
taken into remand but have since been released. Their names have not
been made public.

From OE24.at comes a graphic of the athletes involved with the trainer Matschiner. The group includes the pro cyclists Kohl and Michael Rasmussen, and the triathlete Lisa Hutthaler. Also note Simon Vroeman, who tested positive for doping last year, was a client of this 'manager'.

Meanwhile, public attention was focused on the Humanplasma laboratory in Vienna, where Kohl said he went three times to receive blood transfusions before buying a transfusion machine together with other athletes.

The
laboratory said it could not confirm or deny Kohl's presence on its
premises, but claimed it had never "approached, invited or received"
athletes for blood doping.

The Austrian cross country skier Christian Hoffmann, as well as Danish cyclist Michel Rasmussen have denied reports that they also paid for and used the machine that was allegedly set up in Matschiner's home.

This article failed to mention Bulgarian sprinter Ivet Lalova, who is linked to Matschiner too.

Until last weekend, when the real business of Armstrong as an elite cyclist
and Tour contender began, everything had gone to plan. There had been much
glad-handing around the world, some showboating in a couple of lesser races
in Australia and California, the now-traditional casual put-downs of
anti-doping campaigners and a little sledging towards his major rival — on
this occasion, his own Astana team-mate, Alberto Contador...

...For his detractors — and there are many both in Europe and in America — the
prospect of the multi-millionaire packing up his train set and heading back
to Texas will be a huge relief. While publicity accompanies his every move,
and a key part of the raison d’etre for his comeback is his global cancer
campaign, suspicion also shadows him at every turn of the pedals.

The platform of transparency and openness with which he trumpeted his return
has quietly been forgotten, while Don Caitlin’s unimpeachable testing
programme — that Armstrong insisted would go ahead — was poorly thought
through and never got off the ground. Arm in a sling as he flies home to
Texas, he will now be desperate to prevent his racing comeback following the
same fate.

03/19/2009

Lance Armstrong submitted to a French doping test yesterday, which involved a hair sample. Lance's latest close shave resulted in hair loos. From Cycling Weekly:

Lance Armstrong has been given a free haircut by the French anti-doping agency (AFLD) during an out-of-competition test.

The seven-times Tour de France champion was visited in
Beaulieu-sur-Mer, France, on Tuesday for his 24th out-of-competition
test since announcing his comeback from retirement last year.
Inspectors requested the usual blood and urine samples, and also
removed a sample of hair for analysis.

"Yet another 'surprise' anti-doping control," wrote Armstrong on his Twitter site. "This one from the French authorities. Urine, blood, and hair! Classic..."

"So I'm clear - never complaining about these tests. Def part of the
job. Feel targeted? Of course. But anything to prove I'm clean.
Onward."

So brave. So bold. And such short hair: apparently he needed a haircut to cover up the sampled areas.

Although this is the first time Armstrong has had hair removed for
testing, obtaining a hair sample is not unusual in the fight against
doping. Hair contains residual traces of substances ingested by the
body - and they are retained in hair until that portion is cut.
Therefore hair can be used to test for longer-term use of banned
substances. However, it's not a completely fool-proof method as
bleaching hair can destroy the markers left in it by certain
substances.

Armstrong was working out in France, preparing for the 2009 Tour de France.

03/06/2009

Top News says that German cyclist Stefan Schumacher will sit the next two years due to his purported use of CERA EPO in the 2008 Tour de France. Schumacher disagree he doped with CERA EPO; he plans on legal action against whomever he can see. Sounds CERA-ious.

Paris - German cyclist Stefan Schumacher was on Friday banned by the ruling body UCI for two years over doping at the 2008 Tour de France.

The UCI imposed a worldwide ban until January 20, 2011, two weeks
after the French Anti-Doping Agency banned him for two years in France.

Schumacher
was found using the latest generation of the blood booster EPO, known
as CERA, during retests of the Tour samples after a test method for
CERA was available.

Schumacher has protested his innocence and stated errors in the doping control proceedings. His lawyer said he will fight the ban before the Court of Arbitration for Sport. (dpa)

The German cyclist won time trials at the Tour last year before he was sent packing.

02/16/2009

Here are ex-cyclist/current journalist Paul Kimmage's writings (thanks to CyclingFansAnonymous), the words Lance Armstrong choose to inflame and impute. The remarks almost sound prophetic when the Amgen press conference is reviewed.

To be fair, Armstrong has never officially tested positive for a PED, yada yada yada. Kimmage could be completely insane with his charges., however almost every ending of the Tour de France appears to be very reminiscent of the ending of Ben Johnson's 1988 Olympic win: the finalists almost all doped.

I will add this and personalize the issue. Both my parent died from cancer. I doubt that either would be insulted using a cancer metaphor to illustrate a controversial issue. However, the issue that would inflame both would be cheating. Cheating and dishonesty at any level would be condemned in memorable vocal displays.

So here it is, the Kimmage invective. Armstrong would do well to answer each charge in measured facts, if he wishes to promote his innocence, not insults to the author.

Were the 'cancer' comments over the top?

"My reaction...the enthusiasm that I had built up about the sport in
the last couple of years has been all but completely wiped out in the
last couple of hours.

Let’s turn the clock back to Armstrong’s
last apparition in the sport. The Tour de France 2005. He’s standing on
the podium. And he makes this big impassioned speech. Which is
basically saying ‘The last thing I’ll say to the people who don’t
believe in cycling, the cynics, the skeptics: I’m sorry for you. I’m
sorry you can’t dream big. I’m sorry you don’t believe in miracles.’
That was 2005, his last ride in the the Tour de France. And the people
flanking him on that podium were Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich. And a
month after that race ended the French newspaper L’Equipe reported that
in his first winning Tour de France, in 1999, Armstrong had tested
positive for EPO. Six separate samples taken during that race revealed
positive tests for EPO.

02/15/2009

A former pro cyclist, and now journalist for the London Times felt the full wrath of Lance Armstrong during a press conference preceding the Amgen Tour of California. Paul Kimmage was bold enough to ask about Armstrong's support of two 'dopers' (Floyd Landis and Irwin Basso). Armstrong let loose with a tirade against Kimmage for writing a piece calling him 'the cancer' of cycling, clearly a metaphor for the alleged use of Armstrong's PEDs leading to his multiple Tour de France wins.

Kimmage apparently has violated the la cosa nostra code of omerta within the cycling doping fraternity by 'spitting in the soup'. That brought him vitriol from multiple outposts of cycling. Perhaps his metaphor was not appropriate in discussing Armstrong (should he have used 'venereal disease', which would also make everyone uncomfortable; maybe 'common cold').

Armstrong told Kimmage he "wasn't worth the chair he was sitting on". Nice comments from a guy who is a purported humanitarian. Although Armstrong took umbrage at the 'cancer' metaphor, he needed to understand the comments were a metaphor only. The journalist was not endorsing cancer. The journalist was not promoting cancer. The journalist in the past used cancer as a metaphor and was not using it in his question.

Last night, I sat in the second row of the Amgen Tour of California Press
Conference. I listened to and asked questions of cycling greats like Basso,
Fiere, Cavendish, Hamilton, Leipheimer, Vande Velde, Brooke Miller (winner of
last year’s women’s race)and Lance Himself. Everything was going as press
conferency as usual...

Lance asked the gentleman his name. The man answered, “Paul Kimmage.” I
render a guess Paul may have legally changed it by now. Kimmage, a former pro
cyclist from the ‘80s and author of doping expose Rough Ride, is known for
exposing the use of drugs in cycling. This is good! The problem? He thinks
Lance’s general popularity has made the scandal of doping “disappear”. This is
bad! This, however, is even worse: When Lance began his comeback, Kimmage said,
in a September interview, “Well he [Lance] is the cancer in this sport. And for
four years this sport has been in remission. And now the cancer's back." Kimmage
literally called Lance Armstrong “a cancer.” Lance responded in what I can only
describe as verbal chemotherapy. And an awesomely high dosage at that.

And Armstrong's response:

"I am here to fight this disease. I am here so I don't have to deal with it,
you don't have to deal with it, none of us have to deal with it, my children
don't have to deal with it. Yet you said I am the cancer. And the cancer is out
of remission. So it goes without saying, no, we aren't going to sit down and do
an interview."

“You [pointing at Kimmage] are not worth the chair you’re sitting on.”

The problem here was that Kimmage didn't judge the crowd in the room. He essentially went into the Roman forum and asked the Cesar if Rome, indeed doesn't suck...not a good idea.

Armstrong, feeling all righteously indignant, and riding for his 'cause' (although the comeback is more about Lance the personality than Lance the cancer fighter) unleashed an unprofessional and undignified tirade on the journalist, clearly veering from the topic and the question. Methinks he protested too much.

A more professional response would have been to coolly kept on-topic.

Pro cycling will never rid itself of doping (and it has proven that competitors will drug cheat with disturbing regularity at every opportunity) while the cycling mafia controls the enterprise (and rooms like this).

Cycling fans and various groupies will adorn Armstrong with attention. Pro cycling will ignore doping, to the determent of the fairness of the sport. Denial is a powerful force. Death and disability from doping is powerful too.

01/26/2009

Our colleague Robin Parisotto, who sits on the UCI (Cycling Union) board of doping reveals that doping charges may be levied by radical changes in pro cyclists's blood indices. Story at The Australian.

THE
first case of a cyclist being charged with doping on the evidence of
his blood profile is expected to be prosecuted in the coming months,
according to Australian anti-doping expert Robin Parisotto.

The
International Cycling Union (UCI) has been building up blood profiles
of its professional cyclists by taking thousands of blood samples over
the past year.

Canberra scientist Parisotto, who sits on the UCI panel overseeing
the anti-doping program, said yesterday more than 30 suspicious samples
had been analysed and there was enough evidence to pursue a handful of
riders
for doping violations.

"We are only collating the results now but I expect in the next few
months the UCI will be taking action against some cyclists," Parisotto
said.

Sounds like the decisions about whom to prosecute are looming.

The blood profiling is designed to identify any cyclists using
banned drugs or methods which manipulate the blood to improve
endurance. He said suspicious samples usually contained high
haemoglobin levels, or unusually low levels (which would indicate a
cyclist was extracting blood to be re-injected during competition).

"There are discussions now about which are the strongest cases to go after," Parisotto said.

"There's only a handful they can confidently follow up. But I
believe in some cases the results are fairly strong and the athlete
will have a hard time explaining them."

The first cycling case will be a test for this new method of identifying drug cheats.

Parisotto said there was a smaller number of suspicious samples than
he would have expected if the program had been in operation three or
four years earlier.

"Now there is more of an effort being made to weed out the cheats and I think some of them are getting scared," he said.

"The risk of getting caught is becoming much greater now that they have to worry about what's in their blood."

Indices to monitor include red blood cell parameters (hemoglobin, and hematocrit), EPO, and other physiological measures, that should be very stable in an individual athlete over time.Also, Parisotto speaks of monitoring the response of particular genes to doping drugs, a very interesting development.

Parisotto, who developed one of the first tests for the blood
booster EPO in the lead-up to the Sydney Olympics, is also working on
the next weapon in the anti-doping war, genetic profiling.

"The technology is there now to do gene profiling on blood tests," Parisotto said.

He said any use of blood doping would show up in changes to an individual's gene activity.

The laboratories will just have to chart the abnormal changes that the drugs make to the blood and genes of the athlete.

01/19/2009

1. Italian
number 109 Filippo Volandri will miss tennis's Australian Open after being
slapped with a ban for using an asthma medicine containing a proscribed
stimulant to excess. (Monsters and Critics)

12/19/2008

Chchchchchanges...Lance Armstrong feels the pain. The dope testers are frequenting the Armstrong house this off-season, and Lance doesn't like it. From AFP: (And The Telegraph)

International drug testers are keeping a watchful eye on Lance
Armstrong during his probation period, the seven-time Tour de France
winner revealed on Thursday.

Armstrong claims to have been drug
tested 11 times in the past 18 weeks and two times in the past four
days. The latest test was conducted by officials from the International
Cycling Union on Thursday at his Texas home.

"UCI control. They
flew a guy from Germany for it. That makes a ton of sense," Armstrong
wrote on Twitter, a social networking website.

Twitter? Well...ok....

Twitter allows users to send short messages which are then posted on subscribers' cell phones and the Internet.

Armstrong even let his Twitter readers know that he was on his way to meet with the drug testers.

"I am back from the shop after riding four hours. I hear the drug testers are waiting at the house. #11," he wrote.

Armstrong,
who plans to resume his cycling career next year, was placed under a
six-month probation period by the United States Anti-doping Agency at
the beginning of August.

Armstrong needs to pass USADA's out-of-competition testing pool before his cycling comeback can become official.

Everything LA does is controversial.

News of his return has drawn mixed reviews in cycling circles.

Armstrong
has been accused of doping practices on several occasions, most notably
in an article in French sports newspaper L'Equipe in 2005, claiming six
urine samples from his 1999 Tour victory contained the blood-boosting
drug EPO.

The rider himself has always denied doping and the UCI cleared him in 2006.

12/01/2008

In the worst kept most obvious non-secret in the sporting world, everyone held a collective breath to see if ex-Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong would sign up for this years bike ride. Yeah, he is.

Seven-times Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong will contest next year's race, his team have confirmed.

Armstrong, who won the Tour between 1999 and 2005,
announced in September that he was coming out of retirement next
season, three years after taking his last victory in the event.

Famously
overcoming cancer prior to the first of his Tour successes, Armstrong
has dedicated his comeback to raising awareness for the global fight
against the disease.

The 37-year-old is scheduled to make his
return on January 20 for the Tour Down Under in Australia and will also
contest the Giro d'Italia for the first time.

Appearances in the
Tour of Flanders, the Tour of California and several of the one-day
classic races have also been pencilled in.

However, a potential
bid for an eighth Tour title had been delayed, with Armstrong failing
to receive an invitation from race organisers Amaury Sport Organisation
(ASO).

Clearly Armstrong deserves admiration for the fight against cancer, and the incredible comeback following surgery and treatment. Also true that his crusade to raise funds for cancer treatment deserves kudos. However, the LA Tour 2009 has been filled with drama and histrionics. Further, the questions about Armstrong's past doping have not been answered, and likely will not be answered (charges ranging from steroids to HGH to EPO to corticosteroids).

The Texan has endured a strained
relationship with ASO - who in October said his return to the Tour
would be "embarrassing" - as well as the French crowds and media over
doping allegations.

He was linked with possible doping by a report by French newspaper L'Equipe three years ago that claimed a 1999 sample from the American contained a banned blood-boosting substance.

But Armstrong never tested positive and was cleared by a Dutch investigator appointed by the International Cycling Union.

Contrary to that statement, Armstrong did test positive for a corticosteroid, which he said he took for saddle sores. More:

He
has made a commitment to ride for the Astana team - who were barred by
ASO from contesting this year's Tour because of their part in previous
doping scandals - alongside 2007 Tour winner Alberto Contador.

Monday's announcement confirming Armstrong's presence on the Tour was made on Astana's website.

Speaking
from their training camp in Tenerife, Armstrong acknowledged that the
combination of age, time out of the saddle and talented team-mates may
leave him playing a supporting role.

"I'm committed to riding for
the best guy," he said. "We'll abide by the same code that I do:
cycling is team sport, while we'd all like to win."

After voicing
concerns in recent weeks about his personal safety in France, Armstrong
also dismissed that issue, adding: "It's not going to keep me from
going and doing my job, and it's not going to keep me from spreading my
message."

The 2009 Tour de France starts in Monaco on July 4.

Such courage once again displayed by LA...braving the vicious French cycling crowd.

Back when he announced his new foray into the pro cycling world, and perhaps the Tour de France, Lance Armstrong stated he was developing his own private doping label. Apparently the 7-time Tour winner is too busy to follow through with the details.

Lance Armstrong
has stated that his 'personal' drug-testing program will be in place by
the time of his first race at the Tour Down Under in January - but no
sooner.

When seven-times Tour de France winner Armstrong announced his comeback
to professional cycling in September, he also announced that he would
be part of a rigorous drug-testing program carried out by US
anti-doping expert Don Catlin and that the results would be published online. The idea was to silence critics and create complete transparency.

So far, no results have been published and according to the Associated
Press (AP), Catlin has admitted that he hasn't yet tested Armstrong.

As noted, Armstrong said he was working with Don Catlin, the UCLA doping/steroid wizard of BALCO fame. However, that's not happening yet.

When asked about the lack of visible test results, Armstrong told AP:
"It's a tough thing to organize, but we will make it happen."

"We're working as quickly as we can to get everyone coordinated, but it's not that simple."

"The program we want to do is going to be intensive," Catlin said.
"And he's a moving target. He's very busy. Keeping up with him, testing
him, takes a lot of planning and it hasn't all come together yet."

Despite the stalling of his own testing program, Armstrong has so
far been tested seven times by the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and
Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) officials.

Armstrong is currently in Tenerife with his Astana team-mates on
the squad's first training camp since the Texan joined. He is scheduled
to race in the Tour Down Under, South Australia, from January 20-25.

Also as noted above, the established programs of USADA and UCI tested the cyclist. Thus, without the big show Armstrong's testing is moving forward.

11/28/2008

Cycling News reports that suspicions of the new CERA EPO in the pro cycling world go up to 50% of the competitors. The figure came up in a recent discussion on Bernhard Kohl's use of CERA EPO in the Tour de France:

In his hearing with the Austrian National Anti-Doping Agency on
Monday, Bernhard Kohl has said that he did research about the blood
booster CERA on the internet. Many in the peloton had talked about the
drug and some thought probably half the peloton is on CERA, according
to an article on the wienerzeitung.at. The Gerolsteiner rider who admitted using the performance-enhancing drug for the Tour de France insisted that he cooperated with the authorities
and "named names" – but admitted that he did not name the doctor who provided him with the latest generation EPO for which he tested positive.

The former Gerolsteiner rider said that he had first heard of CERA last
year, and looked it up on the internet. Upon learning that it was a form of blood-booster EPO, "it was out of the question for me." However, as time went on, the drug was discussed in detail in the peloton, he toldthe wienerzeitung.at., with the supposition that "probably half the riders were underway with CERA."

Kohl wants to protect his supplying doctor, saying "He gave it to me
at my insistence. He has nothing to do with sport or doping. If I would give his name, his existence would be destroyed," according to the wienerzeitung.at. The 26-year-old further said that "It had nothing to do with a doping network."

The former pro has also testified before the World Anti-Doping Agency and the German federal police Bundeskrimnalamt, which is investigating
the former T-Mobile Team for which Kohl rode from 2005-2006. "And I definitely named names there."

Sounds like Kohl knows some doping secrets about pro cycling riders. Will these names come out?

Everyone appears to be hit hard with rising tax rates, including pro cyclists.

A certain amount of cycling winnings goes to anti-doping programs. Because of new developments, Cycling News says the dope tax will double from 2% to 4% in 2009.

The UCI's ProTour council (CUPT) has voted to increase the professional riders' contribution to the fight against doping as of next year. Until now, two percent of the riders' prize moneys in ProTour races had to be paid to the UCI to add to the financing of anti-doping measures. As of 2009, this 'tax' will be raised to four percent.

The decision did not please the rider representatives within the ProTour council, Dario Cioni and Cédric Vasseur, who voted against it. The two representatives of the riders' association CPA insisted that "the largest majority of riders were opposed to a taking away of four percent, but that they accepted a participation of two percent."

But the CUPT being composed of 12 members (six representing the UCI, two representing the race organisers, two representing the teams and two representing the riders), the two pro riders were overruled.

For all the races which are not part of the ProTour calendar, the riders' financial participation to the fight against doping remains at two percent.

Further to this, Spanish cyclist Imanol Erviti (Caisse d'Epargne) recently deplored that the press did not publicise the riders' efforts against doping enough. "The measures against doping are not given the same media attention than the positive doping cases," he said at the 13th Days of Pro Cycling held in Cuenca, Spain, from November 20 to 22. "It is not being said, for example, that the riders pay a percentage of their prize money to the UCI for the controls."

The rider, who won a stage in the last Vuelta a España, denounced doping, saying that "every case that is announced does great damage, because in the end the whole peloton seems guilty." But he also insisted that "cyclists do things to combat doping that seem incredible in other sports, like permanently being located by the UCI or give DNA samples," according to Marca.

No one likes increased taxes, however considering the reported hemorrhaging of riders using CERA EPO, looks like anti-doping in pro cycling needs more resources.

11/23/2008

Floyd Landis, the winner disqualified cyclist in 2006 Tour de France continues legal strategies designed to...well not sure what they are designed to accomplish at this point.

Landis tested positive for exogenous testosterone both in the T:E ratio, and in a test for synthetic testosterone (and note this subject has been debated ad infinitum from all angles of the issue pro and con).

Landis won then lost the 2006 Tour de France. His case was heard on appeal at Pepperdine CA in 2007 where the cyclist lost a split decision. The CAS rejected Landis's further appeal in 2008 to uphold his suspension from cycling competition. Landis will come off suspension in January 2009.

American Floyd Landis has challenged the ruling of the international
Court of Arbitration for Sport that stripped him of the 2006 Tour de
France title in U.S. Federal court, charging that the system for
resolving doping cases is inherently biased against the accused.

In a motion filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles,
Landis claimed that the three arbitrators in the case had undisclosed
conflicts of interest that may have affected the outcome of his appeal
of an earlier panel’s ruling. In June, the CAS panel upheld Landis’
two-year suspension, the negation of his Tour de France win and imposed
a $100,000 penalty to offset the costs of prosecuting a case that the
panel said was made unnecessarily complex by Landis’ “scattershot”
defense.

Does a United States court hold any sort of authority or jurisdiction over the Court of Arbitration for Sports, which is in Switzerland?

Landis originally filed the case in September, seeking to vacate the
CAS arbitration award. On Thursday, Landis’ attorneys filed a motion
alleging that all three members of the appeals panel had conflicts of
interest that would have precluded a fair hearing in the matter. Those
conflicts, the motion asserts, went unreported by each of the three.

History indicates the challenges to the CAS are incredibly futile.

Since the creation of the World Anti-Doping Agency and the U.S.
Anti-Doping Agency, there have been no successful challenges to CAS’s
authority in the court systems of athletes’ respective countries.

In 2004 Spain's David Meca-Medina and Slovenia's Igor Majcen, two
professional long-distance swimmers mounted a challenge to a CAS
ruling. The European court, however dismissed the claim, but also
ordered them to pay court costs for both sides, ruling that the
challenge was "frivolous" in nature.

Here in the U.S., sprinter Justin Gatlin failed in his effort to
overturn a CAS ruling in U.S. Federal Court. The court ruled it didn’t
have jurisdiction in the matter and rejected Gatlin’s effort to
overturn his CAS-imposed suspension.

One option Landis did not exercise was to file an appeal with the
Switzerland’s Federal Tribunal, which may have some authority over the
Swiss-based CAS.

In the motion filed on Thursday, Landis’ attorneys claimed that
evidence of arbitrators’ conflicts of interest on recently came to
light after CAS recently posted information about past cases on its Web
site.

Landis’ federal court strategy may cause some concern at WADA’s
world headquarters in Montreal, since arbitration of his case and its
subsequent appeal consumed nearly the agency’s entire $1.8 million
litigation budget in 2008.

"We will certainly watch the case with interest," said WADA director
general David Howman. “We have no intention of being pushed into
compromising our efforts to stop doping, not matter how much it costs.”

Isn't it starting to be ridiculously irresponsible to carry out this obsessive fight forever? Even if the funds are donated, why enrich the barristers with frivilous motions over and over and over...drained defense funds too...and when your suspension will be expired before the Obama administration takes over (was Obama even a US Senator when Landis won the Tour in 2006?)...hey there is an idea...a Presidential pardon from the out-going Bush adminsitration.

11/21/2008

An insider on the Spanish doping scene says Dr. Eufemaino Fuentes doped the 1992 Spanish team to Olympics glory. How inside? How about Dr. Fuentes wife, Cristina Perez, herself a former Olympian.

In Barcelona, Spain won (G/S/B) these medals: 13/7/2. (which included 4 in track, and one in cycling; also teams in field hockey, water polo, and many in sailing) How many medals did Spain win in 1988 in Seoul: 1/1/2. Quite an improvement in schievement in 4 years. To AFP:

The wife of the doctor at the centre of the 'Operation Puerto' doping
affair said she could bring down Spanish sport if she revealed all to
which she was privy.

In an interview with La Provincia newspaper, the wife of Dr
Eufemiano Fuentes, Cristina
Perez, a European 400m bronze medallist in
1987, said: "I know what happened at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992."

Perez
said "many Olympic medals" were won by Spain thanks to her husband.
Spain won a record 13 gold medals at the Barcelona Games.

"It's a Pandora's Box and if opened one day, it could bring down sport," Perez said.

"But
out of respect for my companions, to the people who sacrificed so much,
I'm keeping mum although I could speak out and ruin all those caught up
in this little world."

Fuentes is reported to have been the
mastermind of a vast blood doping network, which was dubbed 'Operation
Puerto' in May 2006 following a police raid on his Madrid laboratory
which uncovered doping products and blood bags.

While names of around 200 'clients' from the world of sport were reportedly found, only a few have been sanctioned.

Perez,
43, herself suspected of doping at the Seoul Olympics in 1988, defended
her husband, saying he had been a victim of a campaign by the Spanish
government.

"To call a doctor dedicated to sports science who has killed no one a criminal mastermind seems shameful to me."

Apparently a doctor who breaks sporting rules, breaks the law, and encourages fraud and cheating might feel a bit shameful to Perez. Then again, is she is a doper herself...

Fuentes also appears to be at the heart of the huge cycling doping scandal, Operation Puerto.

11/18/2008

Is this a little weird or what? Lance Armstrong, the lion of the Tour de France, certainly sounds more like the lamb as he worries about getting physically attacked during the Tour. To the Times Online:

Lance Armstrong has given the broadest indication yet that he will try to win
an eighth Tour de France next summer, but he has also expressed his fear
that he could be the victim of physical assaults by spectators if he does.

The American, 37, whose Astana team are seeking talks with Tour officials
before confirming his return to the sport’s blue riband event, said: “There
are some aggressive, angry emotions. If you believe what you read, my
personal safety could be in jeopardy.

“Cycling is a sport of the open road and spectators are lining that road. I
try to believe that people, even if they don’t like me, will let the race
unfold.”

French media, fans, and experts accuse LA of doping, accusations that reach emotions deep down in France. Would these emotions really lead to a Tour fan confronting Armstrong? Assaulting Armstrong? Or is there something amiss here? Overblown concern?

Asked if he feared being attacked, Armstrong said: “Yeah. There are directors
of French teams that have encouraged people to take to the streets . . .
elbow to elbow. It’s very emotional and tense.”

Armstrong continues in a dramatic way:

“...The level of scrutiny
I’ve had throughout my career from the press and anti-doping authorities is
unmatched,” he said.

“I’m not afraid of anything. I’ve got nothing to hide. There are no secrets.
To the critics, I would say, believe it or not, there are exceptional
athletes out there: Michael Phelps, Paula Radcliffe . . .”

Armstrong has said that when he returns he will subject himself to daily tests
by an independent analyst who will post the results online.

Isn't this a bit histrionic? The most scrutinized athlete in history? More examined than Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, and Ben Johnson? One wonders if this isn't LA's huge status play -- the best ever at cycling, and the most scrutinized athlete in history, the center of the universe...

11/12/2008

Pro cyclist Emanuele Sella joins 'Pro-cyclists Banned for CERA EPO Use' club, when the Italian sports authority handed down a one year ban. The cyclist caught a break when he cooperated with the Italian court. To the Sydney Morning Herald

Emanuele Sella is the latest cyclist to be found guilty of using CERA, the third generation EPO drug, it was reported.

The
Societa CSF Gruppo Navigare rider has been banned for one year by the
Italian Olympic Committee's (CONI) anti-doping office after being
caught in an out-of-competition test taken on July 23.

A one-year
ban was handed down, instead of two, after the rider admitted his guilt
and co-operated with the court during his trial in August, ANSA news
agency reported.

Sella was the surprise package of the 2008 Giro d'Italia, winning three climbing stages and the time trial at Plan de Corones.

However,
he is the latest rider to fail a test for CERA, which has also snared
Tour de France third Bernard Kohl and Riccardo Ricco, Leonardo Piepoli
and Stefan Schumacher.

In September, Tour de France officials
announced they would be retesting samples for CERA, with the
International Olympic Committee following suit in October.

11/08/2008

The International Olympic Committee wants the UK to make athletic doping a criminal offense. And the IOC wants the laws in place before the 2012 London Olympic Games. To the Telegraph:

The IOC are growing increasingly frustrated at Britain's refusal to introduce legislation to outlaw the possession, supply and distribution of
performance-enhancing drugs.

Their stance leaves them out of step with other European countries such as Sweden, France, Italy, Greece and Germany where anti-doping laws mean
athletes and their suppliers can go to jail.

Arne Ljungqvist, the chairman of the IOC's medical commission, said he would be pressing for a change in the British law, which would be an important legacy of the 2012 Olympics.

Wonder if Chicago's 2016 bid is affected by this requirement? There are substance abuse laws in the USA, but no sports fraud laws. Furthermore the US tends to ignore doping or steroid use, choosing instead to pursue the suppliers (as with BALCO). Only athletes perjuring themselves spend any time in jail.

The IOC are considering making it a condition of bidding for future Olympic Games that candidate countries have anti-doping laws. In the meantime, just as the Chinese authorities were persuaded to introduce new legislation in the run-up to this summer's Games, Britain will be under pressure to fall into line.

Ljungqvist, who is also a board member of the World Anti-Doping Agency, said: "I think legislation is very important that criminalises certain offences as detailed in the WADA code because it allows public authorities to intervene where we cannot.

"We as sports authorities have our limited possibilities regulated by our code. We can do testing but we cannot do searches."

The IOC have been convinced of the importance of criminal legislation after the events of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.

It was only because of Italy's tough anti-doping laws that they were able to
expose blood-doping in the Austrian cross-country skiing team after police raided the athletes' accommodation and seized haematological equipment and banned substances.

Britain hope to have a new independent anti-doping agency in place by next
year but the Government have so far resisted calls to criminalize doping.

Ljungqvist said: "This is on my agenda so that Britain does have a law in place at the time of the Games which will allow them to take the same action as the Italians did if a similar situation occurred."

10/16/2008

A German TV station pulled the plug on the Tour de France broadcasts. The public station will not carry live coverage of the Tour in 2009. (ARD.com) Looks like Lance Armstrong may ride in the papers only in 2009.

COLOGNE, Germany -- German public broadcaster ARD has pulled out of
the Tour de France and will no longer carry live coverage of the
world’s most important cycling race.

ARD executives meeting in Cologne Thursday said the chronic doping
scandals that have plagued the Tour made it impossible to justify
major coverage.

The Tour de France was once a major ratings winner in Germany but
doping charges -- in particular against German rider Jan Ulrich --
have tainted the event in the minds of many fans. This year’s event
was a ratings flop.

Public channel ZDF, which usually shares the Tour rights with ARD,
is expected to air the 2009 event but it is unclear if it will
continue to provide live daily coverage as it has in the past.

Interesting development. With all the doping (steroids and HGH) scandals in the US, not a single audible protest was ever heard from a commercial TV station. Ratings talk louder than ethics. (To Reuters)

"The sporting value of the Tour de France has dropped
considerably due to the many doping cases," ARD chairman Fritz
Raff said in a statement. "The value of the broadcast has
similarly decreased."

The decision came a day after Austrian Bernhard Kohl, who
finished as best climber and was third overall at this year's
Tour, admitted using CERA, the new generation of the
blood-boosting EPO.

Germany's Stefan Schumacher, who liked Kohl rode for the
Gerolsteiner team, was one of a number of other riders to test
positive during the Tour.

ARD and fellow public network ZDF pulled the plug on their
Tour de France broadcasts in 2007 when it was revealed German
rider Patrik Sinkewitz tested positive.

10/15/2008

He finished fourth in the Tour de France. He slipped by doping control with problems...until a retest of CERA EPO revealed his urine was dirty. Now, Bernhard Kohl admits during the 2008 Tour de France he doped with CERA EPO. To Sporting Life:

Austrian cyclist Bernhard Kohl has admitted to taking CERA, according to a report.

The 26-year-old, who finished third in this year's Tour de France,
tested positive for the new generation of the banned blood booster EPO
both before and during the Tour after samples were re-tested at the
French laboratory in Chatenay-Malabry, France's national anti-doping
agency revealed on Monday.

As well as claiming a place on the podium, the Gerolsteiner rider
also won the Polka Dot jersey as the best climber on this year's Tour.

And, talking to Austrian national broadcaster ORF, he has now
admitted the weight of expectation drove him to use the banned
substance.

"I gave in to temptation, because the pressure for success on my shoulders was unbelievably great.

"I am only human and like many humans in an exceptional situation I became weak."

Kohl was the fourth rider to test positive for CERA on this year's Tour.

Disturbing that Kohl evaded doping control until a special re-assay found CERA EPO. We find that disturbing.

10/14/2008

Austria's Bernhard Kohl will be the "seventh and last" positive
doping case from this year's Tour de France, according to sports daily
L'Equipe on Tuesday.

Kohl, the best climber at this year's race
where he finished third overall, has become the fourth rider to test
positive for CERA, a new generation of the banned blood booster EPO
(erythropoietin).

Here is the tally for doping in 2008 Tour de France, of which 4 were CERA EPO:

In all seven riders tested positive at this year's race, which was won by Spaniard Carlos Sastre of the CSC team.

Italians
Riccardo Ricco and Leonardo Piepoli and Germany's Stefan Schumacher all
tested postive for CERA, which until recently was thought to be
undetectable.

During the race Ricco, the winner of two climbing
stages, was ejected along with his Saunier Duval team after urine
samples belonging to the Italian revealed traces of CERA.

Ricco
followed Spanish duo Manuel Beltran, of Liquigas, and Barloworld rider
Moises Duenas in leaving the race, both of whom tested positive for EPO.

On
the race's final day it was revealed that Dmitri Fofonov, a Kazakh who
rides for Credit Agricole, tested positive for a banned stimulant. He
has since been banned for three months.

Weeks ago it was
confirmed that Ricco's teammate Piepoli, a climber who won the 10th
stage to Hautacam in the Pyrenees, also tested positive for CERA.

Then
last week Schumacher - Kohl's team and room-mate at Gerolsteiner - was
also confirmed as having tested positive for CERA. The German won both
time trials on the race.

On Monday Kohl was the latest rider to
be snared for using EPO to oxygenate his blood cells, thus boosting his
abilities to perform on the world's toughest bike race.

And this is it for CERA positives:

Although
it had been reported recently that France's national anti-doping agency
was set to reveal a deluge of positive tests, L'Equipe said Tuesday the
Kohl positive case "is the seventh and last positive, according to our
information".

The French anti-doping agency (AFLD) was in charge
of this year's controls as the Tour was being held outwith the auspices
of the International Cycling Union (UCI) because of a dispute, which
has now been resolved.

The AFLD recently pioneered a new blood
test for CERA, the latest generation of a drug which has been in use in
endurance sports since the early 1990s.

Earthtimes carries the story on Italian pro cyclist Ivan Basso, the elite cyclist who found Operation Puerto and Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes injected into his illustrious career. Interesting that when Lance Armstrong won the string of Tour de France races Basso and Germany's Jan Ullrich put put up the strongest challenges; both are now considered disgraced dopers.

Cyclist Ivan Bassoi on Tuesday received a six-month prison sentence,
which was converted to a fine of 10,800 euros, for his involvement in
the Spanish doping scandal known as Operacion Puerto. Basso, who wasn't
present in court, received the punishment after reaching an agreement
with Italian authorities to avoid a drawn-out prosecution. The 30-year-old reached the deal because he wanted to put the scandal behind him and return to racing, said his lawyers.

Basso
was banned from the sport for his links with Spanish Doctor Eufemiano
Fuentes, the man at the centre of the Operacion Puerto anti-doping
investigation carried out by Spanish authorities. The cyclist
confessed to giving blood to Fuentes and was subsequently banned for
two years on June 15, 2007 by the Italian Cycling Federation (FCI). The
time he had already spent under team suspension whilst riding for CSC
and temporary suspension since leaving Discovery were taken into
consideration

It was reported last month that Operation Puerto produced little or nothing in results; apparently not true.

10/12/2008

The Australian physician who guided the lab which found the Lance Armstrong 'controversial' positive EPO in 1999, harbors deep concern about the LA Comeback Tour. To the Herald-Sun.

Dr
Michael Ashenden, whose analysis of Armstrong's urine samples from the
1999 Tour de France allegedly revealed that the cyclist used the
blood-boosting drug EPO during the race, said too many people in
Australia had been "dazzled" by Armstrong's "star power".

"It surprises me that the Tour is willing to embrace such a controversial figure," Ashenden said.

"It surprises me in the wider context that there hasn't been more adverse reaction to his proposal to come back."

There has been adverse reaction to the LACT (Lance Armstrong Comeback Tour), which is muted. However note that LA stands to make a little currency and enjoy alot of publicity off the LACT.

The International Cycling Union last week ruled Armstrong could take
part in the Tour Down
Under, despite the cyclist not complying with a
six-month drug testing program in the lead-up to the January event.

"People are dazzled by the star factor and they are not pausing to
really reflect on what this is all about and whether or not it would be
good for the sport," Dr Ashenden said.

He also questioned Armstrong's motives in appointing prominent anti-doping scientist Don Catlin to his team.

This is the first major medical professional to question Catlin's role in the LACT. Of course Catlin is violating a major tenet of science -- objectivity. Sadly he points to his reputation -- which although good -- is not a part of the standard of objective lab testing.

"Everyone recognises that this is prone to abuse. If Don Catlin finds EPO he can't do anything about it," Dr Ashenden said.

Tour de France champion Greg Lemond also questioned the point of
self-policing by cycling teams, and said Armstrong must do more if he
was to prove he is 100 per cent clean.

"It's like a wolf guarding a hen house. You've got to have a group with no self-interest," Lemond said.

10/08/2008

The UCI today cleared Lance Armstrong's first comeback race in Australia at the 'Tour Down Under'. Armstrong's late entry into the anti-doping protocol held up the LA comeback. (AP)

Cycling's governing body is relaxing its rules to allow Lance
Armstrong to make his comeback at a road race in Australia in January.
The International Cycling Union said the seven-time Tour de France
champion can compete in the Jan. 20-25 Tour Down Under, his first race
since coming out of retirement after three years.

A strict
application of testing rules would not have allowed the 37-year-old
Texan to compete until Feb. 1, 2009, six months after he filed
paperwork with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.

But the UCI said
Wednesday that Armstrong could return early because its drug-testing
standards have improved since the rule was drawn up four years ago.

The Armstrong mystique must trump the rules. LA did not have to enter into the protocol for the required 6 months. Thus the old boy network of privilege continues on; if a cyclist is an elite world superstar he doesn't have to play by the rules. (Isn't this what got the Dow Jones and the stock market into trouble in part? Now if only the poor cyclists could get subprime anti-doping testing).

Wonder if LA tests positive for doping, do the rules get bent again?

"Riders are now subject to a much-reinforced system of monitoring
compared to that of the past," the governing body said in a statement.
"Lance Armstrong has and will be the subject of very strict monitoring
throughout the period running up to his return to the peloton."

Armstrong's
comeback is meant to draw attention to his global campaign to fight
cancer, a disease he survived before winning seven straight Tours from
1999-2005.

It is also a defiant stand against critics who doubt
he could have achieved those victories without the use of
performance-enhancing drugs.

Now he is liable to be tested at any
time without notice and will have his own biological passport as part
of a UCI-backed initiative to monitor possible doping offenses.

Riders
must give a series of blood and urine samples that allow a World
Anti-Doping Agency-accredited laboratory to establish a baseline.
Fluctuations from those readings afterward could indicate doping.

So th rules will be broken if you are Lance Armstrong. Not an auspicious start to a comeback meant to show LA did it/will do it the right way.

The
IOC's announcement comes 48 hours after reanalyzed samples from the
Tour de France using the latest technology unearthed two drug cheats -
Germany's Stefan Schumacher, a double stage winner on this year's race,
and Italian Leonardo Piepoli.

IOC spokesman Emmanuelle Moreau
told AFP: "This is part of our normal procedure. We keep the samples
for eight years and whenever a new test arrives we carry out new tests."

The
CERA form of EPO was detected for the first time at this year's Tour in
the sample of Italian cyclist Riccardo Ricco with a full test developed
to combat it by the French laboratory at Chatenay-Malabry.

The
laboratory is currently retroactively checking 15 samples from this
year's Tour with two of those producing Schumacher and Piepoli's
positive tests.

It was that double success that "prompted the IOC to retest samples from Beijing," explained Moreau.

The
IOC is now in the process of moving all the Beijing samples to its
headquarters in Lausanne before finalizing the conditions and timing of
the new tests.

French drugs testers are continuing to screen samples from riders
who competed in this year's Tour de France and expect to announce more
positive results despite the race ending three months ago.

"The tests are still underway, they are not all done yet," French
Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD) head Pierre Bordry told Reuters on Wednesday.

"I imagine there could be one or two more cases," race director
Christian Prudhomme added, in a week when two Tour riders were exposed
as drugs cheats.

On Monday, Italy's Leonardo Piepoli and Germany's Stefan Schumacher
were both revealed to have tested positive for CERA (Continuous
Erythropoiesis Receptor Activator), a new generation of banned
blood-booster.

The positive tests are the result of the AFLD retroactively testing blood samples for the new type of erythropoietin (EPO).

The Chatenay-Malabry laboratory has developed a more effective
blood test to find CERA, which had been difficult to detect through
urine samples.

10/07/2008

Reports today out of Europe say that there are 2 'new' cyclists testing positive in the EPO retest at the 2008 Tour de France although was reported earlier. The new name is Stefan Schumacher who won time trials at the 2008 Tour. The old name is Riccardo Ricco's teammate Leonardo Piepoli. To Cycling Extreme:

Make it six riders who have now returned positive drug tests from the 2008 Tour de France. The latest two riders’ positive test results were announced Monday.

German
Stefan Schumacher, who surprisingly won both Tour de France individual
time trials, has tested positive for a new generation of the
Erythropoietin (EP0) called CERA (Continuous Erythropoisis Receptor
Activator), according to the web site of French daily sports newspaper,
L'Equipe, and as reported by Agency France Press (AFP).

The
Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) also announced Leonardo Piepoli, who
won the race's 10th stage to Hautacam in the Pyrenees, tested for
positive for CERA.Piepoli, climbing specialist, was a key helper of
former Saunier Duval teammate Riccardo Riccò, also a double Tour de
France stage winner this year. Last week, Ricco was banned for 20
months after testing positive for CERA at the Tour.

Piepoli was kicked off the tour for murky reasons which were unclear; those reasons are clear now.

Italian Riccardo Ricco was expelled from the Tour after testing
positive for CERA, while team-mate Leonardo Piepolo twice tested
positive for the blood booster.

Schumacher won both time trials during this year's Tour and
Hans-Michael Holczer, director of the Gerolsteiner team, told Belgian
newspaper La Derniere Heure: "The director of the Tour, Christian
Prudhomme, has confirmed [that Schumacher has tested positive] - I have
no doubts about it."

Holczer confirmed Schumacher has been suspended by the team, but the German denies any wrongdoing.

"I am hearing it from you for the first time," Schumacher is quoted
as telling German news agency SID. "I can only say that I have not
doped. This is complete nonsense."

Four cyclists - Manuel Beltran, Moises Duenas, Ricco and Dmitri
Fofonov - failed drugs tests at this year's race and were subsequently
thrown out of the Tour.

10/05/2008

The new boss of the Tour de France minced few words to disguise his unhappiness with American pro rider Lance Armstrong. Jean-Etienne Amaury referred to Armstrong (in a double negative) as an embarrassment.

Seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong has been an
embarrassment to the French race, the new head of the Tour's organizer
said in an interview Saturday.

L'Equipe quoted Jean-Etienne Amaury as saying that Armstrong has not always been good for the Tour.

"We can't say that he has not embarrassed the Tour de France, as he has had a quite a complicated history with it," Amaury said.

The 32-year-old Amaury was named president of the Amaury Sport
Organization earlier this week, replacing Patrice Clerc, who was known
for his hard line against doping. Some observers interpreted the change
as a sign that the ASO intended to soften its position on doping.

Amaury, however, insisted the fight against doping remains a top priority.

"The
Tour de France's position has always been very strict and that will not
change in the years to come," he said. ASO "is quite conscious of the
fact that doping undermines cycling's credibility."

Asked
whether a comeback by the 37-year-old Armstrong, who retired in 2005
after winning his seventh consecutive title, would throw suspicion on
the race, Amaury said that "today's tools in the fight against doping
are different."

Armstrong, long know for his aggressive defense, took a swing back at the French. To the BBC:

Lance Armstrong has hit back at Tour de France
organisers who claimed the seven-time Tour champion's return to cycling
was "embarrassing".

The American, who has always denied allegations of drug use,
said: "I won the Tour seven straight years and was never found to be
guilty of doping.

"Not to mention that my team of 25 riders over those seven years was also never found to be positive.

"The last time I checked, I won the Tour
seven straight years and was never once found to be guilty of doping
despite seven years of intense scrutiny," Armstrong said in a
statement.

"We won clean and fair. Where's the embarrassment in that?"

The 37-year-old added in a statement: "Also,
according to industry standards, the TV ratings, worldwide media
impressions, spectators along the route, and global sponsorships (of
the Tour) were at an all time high.

"It comes as an issue of distraction. While I love the event and France's people, I cannot accept this sort of grandstanding."

That controversial 2005 EPO sits out there like the 1000 pound doping gorilla in the locker room.

10/03/2008

1. Jan Ullrich says he will not resort to doping follow Lance Armstrong out of retirement. (The LA Times Blog)

When Lance Armstrong was winning his seven consecutive Tour de
France titles, seemingly every year the easygoing Jan Ullrich was a
co-favorite. Until somehow, in some stage, Armstrong would blow by the
German cyclist on some massive mountain climb. Or Ullrich would fall in
the rain in a time trial. Or something.

After Armstrong retired, Ullrich was almost universally granted
status as the new peloton leader, but instead, Ullrich got caught up in
the doping scandals and retired in disgrace.

In an interview with VeloNews,
Ullrich says he would not be surprised if Armstrong won the Tour again
after his return from three years in retirement. And, no, Ullrich is
not planning his own comeback so that he can finish second to Armstrong
again.

Frank Schleck was provisionally suspended by his team Friday after
admitting he transferred money to a Swiss bank account held by a doctor
at the center of a major doping scandal.

The Luxembourg rider had appeared before his country's anti-doping
agency on Wednesday for a hearing into his alleged involvement in the
Operation Puerto doping scandal in Spain.

Danish team CSC Saxo Bank said Schleck had transferred the money to
the account of Eufemiano Fuentes in March 2006 "to receive training
advice by experts who presumably worked with some of the biggest names
in the sport."

Schleck admitted making "a serious blunder" and regretted the
contact with "these people," the team said. However, he denied having
had direct contact with Fuentes and reiterated his claim that he had
never engaged in doping.

The team manager, Bjarne Riis, said Schleck would be suspended from
racing "until we have had the chance to evaluate the outcome of this."

A German prosecutor contends that Schleck paid almost $9,850 into a
Swiss account held by Fuentes, who is at the center of the Puerto case.

Bordry yesterday offered to retest the samples according to L'Equipe
newspaper as of a way to prove Armstrong's good faith and dispel
accusations made by the L'Equipe newspaper that the samples may contain
traces of the banned blood booster EPO.

In a written statement, Armstrong sidestepped the offer by claiming
that an independent investigation instigated by the UCI had said the
1999 samples “have not been maintained properly, have been compromised
in many ways, and even three years ago could not be tested to provide
any meaningful results.”

“There is simply nothing that I can agree to that would provide any
relevant evidence about 1999,” Armstrong added in his statement.

Armstrong also pointed out that the “the Independent Investigation
concluded that the French laboratory, the French Ministry of Sport, and
Dick Pound, the former head of the World Anti-Doping Agency, all
behaved improperly with respect to the 1999 Tour de France samples.”

Obviously Armstrong will reject an offer to retest his sample. What does he have to gain? Not much whatever the new outcome; there will continue to be doping accusations against the 7-time Tour de France winner. What can he lose? He could lose more of his reputation if the sample turned up positive. However the French answer (BBC Sport)

The head of the French anti-doping agency believes
Lance Armstrong has missed a
chance to prove his critics wrong over
allegations of drug use.

Pierre Bordry gave him the opportunity to have samples taken during the 1998 and 1999 Tours de France retested.

But the seven-time Tour champion refused to consent to the new tests.

"If the analysis is clean it would have been very good for him.
But he doesn't want to do it and that's his problem," Bordry told BBC
Sport.

"It was a good opportunity for him to answer
positively to my proposition, because if he is clean, as he says, I am
ready to follow him."

The American, who has always vigorously denied any wrongdoing,
has announced he will return to the sport in 2009 after an absence of
more than three years.

Armstrong, who would have to give his permission for tests on
any sample older than eight years, gave a terse response to Bordry's
invitation to prove he had "never cheated in his brilliant career".

As a reminder, here is the collection of samples that reportedly turned out an Armstrong positive for EPO:

The urine samples in question have been the subject of speculation
ever since French newspaper L'Equipe reported in 2005 that six B
samples contained the banned substance EPO - a blood-boosting hormone
that enhances endurance.

Drug-testing protocol dictates that blood or urine is divided
into A and B samples and both must show traces of the banned substance
for a test to be declared positive. Cycling did not have a robust test
for EPO until 2001.

10/01/2008

Now rivaling the Brett Favre annual comeback for 'most popular comeback story' Lance Armstrong makes the news during the night:

Cycling weekly says Lance should not enter the Australian 'Tour Down Under' because he would need an exemption from the 6 month doping registration rule. And why start a revitalized career already bending the rules?

The governing body's rules state that a rider wishing to come out of
retirement must register the intent six months in advance, so they can
be available for out-of-competition dope tests. It's a plain enough
rule, necessary to prevent a loophole that could be exploited by a
rider wishing to use performance-enhancing drugs in the run-up to a
competitive return.

Thing is, Armstrong only registered on August 1, meaning he cannot
race in a UCI event until February. The Tour Down Under starts on
January 21, 2009...

Armstrong is returning to cycling with anti-doping guru Don Catlin
in his entourage. Part of his return ticket is to show he is clean. So,
absolute adherence to the rules from the very start.

It may only be 'a few days' but a very important principal is at stake.

Common sense dictates that the rules should be observed. If that
prompts the Tour Down Under's organisers to delay the race, then that
is their prerogative, but the rule should not be bent to suit one
individual.

Armstrong is not bigger than the sport. It may be 'good for
business' for Armstrong to make his comeback at the Tour Down Under,
but it is not good for the sport if a rule has to be broken in the
process.

Anti-doping legislation relies on being applied equally to every
athlete. Forget the Cipollini precedent, apply the rule as written now
and in the future.

If Armstrong wants transparency and if he wants to dispel the
rumours and the doubt, a good starting point would be not to contest
the rules.

Armstrong, staging a well publicized comeback, wants to assure the world his cycling will be clean. One of the thorns in Armstrong's side continues to be the 'alleged' positive 1999 urine sample; (again allegedly) Armstrong's stored samples tested positive for EPO, a test not available at the time of the sample collection. However Armstrong disputes several issues including chain of custody of the samples.

Now the French agency AFLD is offering to retest the '99 samples for EPO, in an attempt to clear Armstrong's name (to Cycling Weekly):

The French Anti-Doping Authority (AFLD) has offered Lance
Armstrong a chance to retest his urine samples from the 1999 Tour -
which, according to French newspaper L'Equipe allegedly contained
traces of EPO.

“Mr. Armstrong is a great champion,” AFLD boss Pierre Bordry told
French newspaper L'Equipe on Wednesday, “Everybody can understand how
someone like him would want to come back to the Tour again."

"I would like that comeback to be in the best possible conditions,
so I would suggest that we do a complete analysis of the six urine
samples taken in the 1999 Tour.That would perhaps give him the chance
to affirm he never cheated during his brilliant career.”

L'Equipe alleged back in 2005 that the 1999 samples, taken during
the first of Armstrong's seven Tours victories, contained traces of
EPO. Armstrong has always categorically denied all allegations of
doping.

Bordry added that the Paris laboratory which had carried out the
testing had confirmed to him that Armstrong's samples had been
conserved in the correct conditions, and that if Armstrong wished the
new tests would be carried out in the presence of an expert nominated
by the Texan.

The French agency seems to have Armstrong in a bit of a pinch. If Armstrong agrees to the testing, he risks the chance that the samples test positive (?again). The same chain of custody, sabotage, and storage issues remain as with the first test, although DNA testing could prove the samples are Armstrong's. If the samples are not positive would the world accept the result?

If Armstrong does agree to re-testing then he will be accused of a cover-up.

Only Armstrong knows the chances of an EPO positive. Is he willing to run the risk of a positive doping sample in 1999? If clean he could prove it. If dirty, he will try to avoid the re-test. This could be interesting. However we are betting an attorney will advise not to volunteer a retest.

09/28/2008

Controversy exists down in Australia about the targeted comeback race for Lance Armstrong -- 'The Tour Down Under'. The cycling governing body -- the UCI -- rules say an athlete must be registered for anti-doping at least 6 months in advance of a major sanctioned race. Armstrong may or may not qualify under the rules.

Tour Down Under organisers are anxiously awaiting official word on
whether cycling star Lance Armstrong can compete in next January's race.

Cycling's world governing body, the UCI, has raised doubts that the
seven-time Tour de France champion will be legally eligible for the
January 20-25 event in Adelaide.

Last Wednesday, the Tour Down Under triumphantly announced Armstrong
would start his high-profile competitive comeback at the race.

But now there is a potentially-decisive hitch.

Speaking at the world road titles in Varese, Italy over the weekend,
UCI boss Pat McQuaid said Armstrong had to show he had registered with
an anti-doping program within six months of the Tour's start.

"The rules state that he must be in the anti-doping system within a six-month period," McQuaid said.

"I don't know on what date Armstrong asked to be registered on the
programme. But the UCI will apply these rules, regardless of the
athlete."

There are reports that Armstrong is not eligible to start competition until February 1.

"We've done all we can do, we're waiting for an official opinion on
the situation," Tour Down Under race director Mike Turtur said.

09/27/2008

Several reports say Frank Schleck, a Luxembourg elite pro cyclist, fell under a doping suspicion because of a payment receipt to Dr Fuentes, the Operation Puerto doping doc. To Cycling Weekly:

Luxembourg's Frank Schleck is the latest rider to be linked to
Operacion Puerto as doping investigations again began to cast a long
shadow over the world championships in Varese on Saturday.

Sixth in the Tour de France this year and the winner on Alpe D'Huez in
the same race in 2006, Schleck has admitted that he is going to meet
the Luxembourg anti-doping authorities, but is adamant he has done
nothing wrong.

However reports in Germany newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung and other
media have said Schleck's name has emerged in connection with the
Operacion Puerto doping scandal in Spain.

The shadowed gathered over Schleck on Friday night after Italian police
searched the Luxembourg team hotel. According to the Italian La
Repubblica newspaper, at least 15 officers from the Italian NAS, the
police responsible for doping and drugs investigations, searched the
hotel from eight o'clock in the evening until four thirty in the
morning. It is unsure if anything was taken away.

Schleck's name has been mentioned in connection with Spanish doctor
Eufemiano Fuentes, the doctor at the centre of the Operacion Puerto
blood-doping ring.

Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) reported on Saturday that
Schleck sent money to Fuentes in 2006, saying that Luxembourg
authorities now had a copy of the transaction bank slip.

However the Team CSC manager, Bjarne Riis says everything is OK for Schleck:

CSC team manager Bjarne Riis fully backed his rider's claims, saying
that they had talked to Frank Schleck and that he had “confirmed that
he hasn't done anything wrong, hasn't violated any anti-doping rules,
and has not had the intention of doing so.”